Many of you are now passing through physical, mental, and emotional trials that could cause you to cry out, "When I have tried all my life to be good, why has this happened to me?" Now, I wish to encourage those who are in the midst of hard trials, who feel their faith may be fading under the onslaught of troubles.

There seems to me no better answer to the question of why trials come and what we are to do than the words of the Lord Himself, who passed through trials for us more terrible than we can imagine. You may have seen the need for that foundation, as I have, at the bedside of someone ready to give up the fight to endure to the end.

If the foundation of faith is not embedded in our hearts, the power to endure will crumble.

Moroni, the son of Mormon in the Book of Mormon, told us how. He teaches the simple and sweet truth that acting on even a twig of faith allows God to grow it. That particle of faith most precious, and which you should protect and use to whatever extent you can, is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

You and I have faith that the way to rise through and above trials is to believe that there is a "balm in Gilead" and that the Lord has promised, "I will not ... forsake thee." Curing does not come automatically through the passage of time, but it does take time. Getting older does not do it alone. It is serving God and others persistently with full heart and soul that turns testimony of truth into unbreakable spiritual strength.

If we have faith in Jesus Christ, the hardest as well as the easiest of times in life can be a blessing. In all conditions, we can choose the right with the guidance of the Spirit. We have the gospel of Jesus Christ to shape and guide our lives if we choose it. We never need feel that we are alone or unloved in the Lord's service because we never are.

We can feel the love of God. The Savior has promised angels on our left and on our right to bear us up. And He always keeps His word. His love is unfailing. I so testify in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.